For each of these 5 days or so I had spent in Singapore so far, I couldn't help notice the presence of dragonflies at the field facing edge of the MRT station nearby the place I now live at.
Some fond memories of my childhood days returned. Back then, I was a very young boy, no more than 10 years old. We spent a week or so at an unknown hill top somewhere near Perak, Malaysia, where one of my maternal families lived. My uncle was in charge of the plantation there then and the company assigned that extremely big house on top of the hill for his family to stay in.
At night, we couldn't see our hands waving in front of our eyes. I remembered being in awe about that and went back telling my friends that there was something 'darker than darkest'. As there was not much modern entertainment such as the Internet or cable TV, we turned in very early. Perhaps it was the level of darkness, or just the rustic hynoptic mating calls of crickets, we slept very well each night.
Each morning, I would ran out and play with the dogs. They were strong and big and were groomed more as guards than pets. Fortunately they didn't seem to mind too much attention given by a small boy. When I was not pestering one of the dogs, I would be chasing after the dragonflies, darting from point to point in abundance. My mother saw that, laughed and caught one dragonfly with a net. Then she tied a string on the tail of the poor dragonfly and handed the end of the string to me.
There I was, brimming with excitement holding my dragonfly kite and clearly displayed the innocence of a city boy. Or perhaps ignorance. Later on, the hapless dragonfly was releassed from its ordeal and darted off sharply, cursing its bad luck but grateful that it escaped unharmed.
Someone old and wise once told me, "If you are buying a house and see dragonflies nearby, your family will have good health and well being staying there." He might be right after all. Many of these species were ancient and existed as far back as the dinosaurs and maybe beyond. So if you think dragonfly, think of survival instincts. They are sensitive to bad environment and tends to avoid polluted areas.
From where I am while typing this, I could see the twin towers with huge flames burning across the straits at Pasir Gudang, Malaysia. So I am surprised that our quality of air and water is sufficient for dragonflies to continue calling this suburb their home. The place had changed so much since I last saw it. Wide wild open spaces had given way to dusty construction sites. Trees were fell to make way for residential, recreation and infrastructure. One thing I noted whenever I walked past the MRT station, these dragonflies were just circling the area. There wasn't an obvious food source and neither was there a nice natural water source where dragonflies normally would roam. They could be driven out from their natural habitat and facing their final days before they migrate to elsewhere or perish. I may be wrong but time will soon tell.
A dragonfly represents monsoon and rain. It also represents uncertain or unexpected changes in the climate or weather of a particular place. Being a creature of the wind, the dragonfly totem represents change. Its iridescent wings are extremely sensitive to the slightest breeze. They remind us to heed where the proverbial wind blows. A dragonfly is also a creature of the water and hence, it is a symbol of subconscious or dreaming mind and thoughts. They remind us to pay attention to our deeper thoughts and desires. A dragonfly lives a very short life and it tries to live to the fullest with what it has. I think this is the greatest lesson for all of us. We should try to enjoy every moment of life with what we have.
Please be happy and survive on like the dragonfly. I will do the same. Thank you to all I managed to meet up during this short 6 days or so. It was a truly humbling experience to receive so much kindness and love. See you guys in Febuary.
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